I am considering buying the Beretta A400 Xcel for shooting trap, it comes with or without a kickoff. I own a Remington 1100 that shoots soft without a rubber butt pad, do you think if I bought the gun without the kickoff it would be fine or should I spend the extra money and go with a kickoff model. I am 67 and in good shape just think the 1100 is a bit heavy and its a field gun not the trap stock.

Jim Huff

Jim,

The Remington 1100 is one of the softest shooting autos there is. Berettas, including the new A400 are not as soft, though they are softer than the inertia action Benellis. If you want the A400 for target shooting, I would probably get it with the KickOff. It’s only an extra $100, about the price of one day’s contest and ammo. Just make sure that the stock is the proper length for you. If it is too short, the KickOff won’t help. It has to be firmly against the shoulder to work properly.

I think that the softest shooting of all the Berettas was the 303. It is higher maintenance than the newer guns and doesn’t handle as wide a variety of shells, but it is soft. But the 1100 is still the best there, in spite of the fact that they eat parts when they get some mileage on them.

The Beretta will have a big advantage over your 1100 field gun in the the Beretta’s stock is shim adjustable. It’s easy to move it around to make it fit perfectly. You can shim the stock on an 1100, but it takes some tinkering. The new Beretta target guns also have adjustable weight systems which can be a little help.

Currently, I think that the Beretta 400 has the best gas action available in an auto. Even thought the 400 action is relatively new, it never seemed to have had the teething problems which all of Beretta’s previous gas actions have had. They all got sorted out, but it’s nice to see the 400 starting off clean.

3 Responses to Beretta A400 For Trap?

I tried the A400 with the Kick off system and it gave me cheek slap because of the stock movement. Without the Kick off it was fine. Don’t overlook The Browning Maxus or Winchester SX3 Sporting which has an adjustable comb. I have both. They are great and VERY soft shooting. As easy to clean as the A400

You want soft. Get the Fabarm XLR5. If you buy new you will get your choice if 3 diffetent lengths of recoil pad to fit you. I have had all the Betetta’s from the 303 onward and should have kept my 303’s. The XLR5 can be used for trap, skeet and sporting. It is NOT a hunting gun. I chose the flat rib…best choice and the least expensive